You're talking of Charnwood. You are quite correct in saying that they emblazon their machinery with Union Flags, and you can be forgiven for believing that they label them as 'Made in Britain' because that is the inference. I made the same assumption about ten years ago when I bought a small bandsaw from them which had a label on it stating: 'Charnwood. Manufacturing machinery at its best' incorporating a large Union Flag and 'Great Britain'.
We could argue semantics about what the term 'Charnwood - Manufacturing machinery at its best' means. One interpretation - the one that I took - is that Charnwood are manufacturing machinery at its best' and the term 'Great Britain' and the union flag, meant that they manufactured the machinery in Great Britain. I think that is the interpretation that most would take.
Another interpretation might be that it isn't machinery that they themselves have manufactured, but is 'machinery at its best for the use of manufacturing by users'.
When I took delivery of my little bandsaw, it clearly wasn't made in Britain, but in China. The blade wouldn't track, the wheels weren't balanced, some of the welding was crude and it needed a lot of fettling. I could just have sent it back, complained that I'd been misled, but I didn't. Had I done so, I'm sure they would have aimed to resolve matters amicably, given that it's a family business. But life is too short. That one instance destroyed my trust in the company, and trust is like virginity - when it's gone it's gone.
I was never happy with the bandsaw and after a couple of years I sold it and bought an Axminster.
It's worth taking a look at the labelling of some Charnwood offerings.
On the bandsaw at the link below, you will see the prominent Union Flag, but look closer at the wording: 'Fitted with a high quality British made ground blade'. So the only thing that are actually claiming is that the blade - a consumable item which thus, has no guarantee, and amounts to no more than 5% of the purchase price - is British made. I'll leave it to others to decide whether that merits a prominent Union Flag, and whether potential purchases can be forgiven for thinking that the whole machine is British made:
Charnwood 8” Woodworking Bandsaw – Charnwood
On this one, you will see that the label shows company name, and beneath it 'Great Britain and the Union Flag'. If I didn't know better, at first sight, I would assume that the label inferred 'Made in Britain' (albeit it doesn't actually say that as such), and I don't think that is an unreasonable assumption:
Charnwood 12” Premium Woodworking Bandsaw – Charnwood
It's worth looking at the 'About Us' history of the company:
"The heart of the business has always been in designing new products, striking a balance between offering the latest technologies and maintaining the tradition of high quality our customers have come to expect from the Charnwood brand. We still do the research and design elements of the process here in Leicester, but most of our manufacturing has now been transferred to low-cost centres in Asia, where we are able to produce competitively priced, high quality machinery as demanded by the British public".
About Us – Charnwood
When they say that they're 'able to produce', (semantics again), do they mean 'procure' or do they mean they themselves do the manufacturing in their own factory Asia, or do they outsource (buy in) generic equipment?
That's a rhetorical question to which I'm not seeking an answer.
I bear no malice towards the company, which is a family business operating in difficult times and I wish them well. I'm casting no aspersions on their equipment, or their service. I did not give them an opportunity to respond to my concerns about the bandsaw I bought ten years ago, or about what I considered to be the misleading use of the Union Flag and the term 'Great Britain'. All I will say is that from a marketing perspective, in my it is more likely to harm, rather than enhance, their reputation.
